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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/23348311">My Gallant Crew</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/vasilysa/pseuds/vasilysa'>vasilysa</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Pirates of the Caribbean (Movies)</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Fluff, Mischief, elizabeth swann is the worst and her father is not much better, hijinks on the high seas, james norrington is going to have grey hairs at the ripe old age of seventeen</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>In-Progress</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-03-27</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-03-28</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-01 09:27:47</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>General Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>No Archive Warnings Apply</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>1</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>3,033</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/23348311</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/vasilysa/pseuds/vasilysa</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>The year is 1720. Lieutenant James Norrington is to escort the future Governor of Port Royal and his daughter to their new home in Jamaica.</p><p>OR: Elizabeth Swann is determined to make the most of her transAtlantic voyage and that means getting into as much mischief as possible.</p><p>One chapter, maybe more.</p><p>Edited just a bit as of 08/26/2020. I think I made the age gap between James and Elizabeth too wide--apparently they are only seven or eight years apart, and not ten.</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>9</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>29</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>My Gallant Crew</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><ul class="associations">
      <li>For <a href="https://archiveofourown.org/users/HolmesFan/gifts">HolmesFan</a>.</li>



    </ul></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>FEBURARY, 1720</p><p>LONDON, ENGLAND</p><p> </p><p>James Norrington was not a man much given to superstition and yet, when he saw the Swann family for the first time, he suspected trouble.</p><p>            He had no idea then how right he was.</p><p>            He stood at attention on the poop deck of the <em>HMS</em> <em>Dauntless</em> as the future Governor ambled over the side of the ship, helped along by one of the new midshipmen. While the boy attended to the several chests of luggage, James appraised his new charge.</p><p>            The man Swann, was tall, slightly plump, and donned a complicated coiffure that threatened to fly away at any moment. He looked every bit the regal English gentleman but he seemed as if he would be more at home at a private concert than on the deck of a ship-of-the line in the bracing winter winds. He stood proudly and offered his hand to James, who nodded curtly at him and accepted his firm grip. This was the man he had been entrusted with escorting to his new post in Port Royal. He had kindly, fatherly features but he was trembling a bit, from exhaustion or nerves, he wasn’t sure. James didn’t fault him; many people were nervous about trans-Atlantic trips.</p><p>            “Lieutenant James Norrington, at your service, sir,” he said formally, shaking the older man’s hand firmly. “Welcome aboard the <em>HMS Dauntless</em>. We will see you to Jamaica as quickly and safely as possible.”</p><p>            “The <em>Dauntless</em>, eh?” Swann asked. He ran his hand approvingly over the walnut finish of the railing. “A fine name. No doubt inspired by her formidable leadership!” Civilians were never very good at small talk with military men, but at least he was making an effort.</p><p>            James winced a bit. “Indeed, sir, although we lost Captain Mercer in a skirmish with French pirates some time ago. It was he who named the ship. A good man.”</p><p>            Swann stiffened uncomfortably, and James realized with a twinge of annoyance that the man was likely contemplating whether or not the <em>Dauntless </em>could actually get him safely to Port Royal. “My condolences, Lieutenant. And you have been leading the ship in his stead, I take it?” He scrutinized James a bit too closely for his liking, and James beat back a flush as he felt every one of his seventeen years must be quite evident on his clean-shaven face.</p><p>            He drew himself up even straighter, if possible, and answered coolly, “It has been my honor to serve as the leader of this crew in Mercer’s regrettable absence. It is not one I take lightly.” Well, his mother had always scolded him for being a bit prideful.</p><p>But if one Swann was bad, two was even worse.</p><p>            “A lieutenant is just a bit above a midshipman, isn’t that right?”</p><p>            James glanced behind Swann and saw a young lady scrambling over the side of the ship, heedless of the young midshipman who had gallantly tried to help her over. She couldn’t have been more than twelve years old. She had wide brown eyes and a mess of golden-brown hair that billowed about her face in the wintry air. It was she who had spoken, as if she had been waiting for just the right moment to announce her appearance.</p><p>            James clicked his tongue disapprovingly. “I wouldn’t say <em>a bit</em>. It takes many difficult years at sea to move up in ranks of the Royal Navy, Miss…”</p><p>            “Swann,” she said brightly. “Elizabeth Swann. How do y’do.” She stuck out her little hand for him to shake and beamed up at him.</p><p>            Her father groaned. “Elizabeth, that is <em>not</em> how you greet gentlemen,” he said wearily, in a tone that suggested they had had this conversation at least once before.</p><p>            She turned and looked at him with a cross expression. “But <em>you</em> did,” she pointed out.</p><p>            “Because <em>I</em> am a gentleman, Elizabeth,” he exclaimed indignantly, as if this should be obvious to the girl, who was clearly just needling him.</p><p>            James focused intently on the bustling harbor scene behind the squabbling duo and fought very, very hard not to smile. When he was in control of his features, he turned to the impertinent child in front of him and bent slightly so that she could see him better. “It is a delight, Miss Swann,” he said, taking the proffered hand and bowing over it. She smelled like soap and starched linens.</p><p>            She looked down that slightly upturned nose imperiously. “A delight, Lieutenant,” she said slowly, and then a mischievous smile spread across her face. “Now you may kiss Papa’s hand.”</p><p>            James straightened and barked out a laugh before he could stop himself.</p><p>            “Alright, I think we have taken up enough of the Lieutenant’s time,” Swann said, planting his hands on her shoulders and turning her firmly away. “We should unpack. Lieutenant, you have been most kind.”</p><p>            Elizabeth rolled her eyes and James reflected that his own father would have backhanded him if he had dared such a gesture, but Swann either did not notice or pretended not to see.</p><p>            “Mr. McMahon, Mr. Hardy, please see the Swanns to their quarters,” James instructed the two young midshipmen sternly. The taller one flinched, distracted from his inspection of the younger Swann.</p><p>            They snapped a salute and picked up the Swann’s things. Swann turned to follow them but Elizabeth said quickly, “Lieutenant, if I may—” Her demure tone took him by surprise, and his eyes narrowed. After only a few minutes of knowing her, he already suspected she was up to something.</p><p>            “Yes?” He asked warily.</p><p>            “I should very much like a tour of the ship,” she said, bringing the full force of that toothy smile to bear on him. She clasped her hands in front of her in excitement, looking hopeful. She was <em>asking</em>, yet James felt he didn’t have a choice in the matter.</p><p>            He knew that the questionable safety of a ship and her crew were not amenable to a young lady’s education, but he also suspected she would explore on her own if he told her no, so he compromised. “If your father allows it, it would be my honor to show you around the <em>Dauntless</em>, Miss Swann.” Why had he given in so easily? He hoped none of the crew were listening to this rather unseemly display of sentimental behavior.</p><p>            She squealed with delight. “Thank you!” Bobbing a clumsy curtsy, she obediently followed her father and the midshipmen to their quarters.</p><p>            The Swanns were eccentric, to say the least, but perhaps the change would be a welcome one.</p><p> </p>
<hr/><p> </p><p>            <em>Perhaps</em> was the key word.</p><p>            The future Governor was seasick for two weeks straight, which of itself was not something Swann could have prevented, nor something to be ashamed of, however--</p><p>            <em>However.</em></p><p>            When she wasn’t busy tending to him, Swann’s young daughter took it upon herself to run wild. And a small part of James could not help but think it was very convenient that the Governor was confined to his bed while his daughter wreaked havoc on the ship.</p><p>            This could mean any number of things, depending on her whims. It could mean that she was bothering the cook, trying to “assist” with the preparation of meals. (James had had to placate an absolutely furious cook who was beside himself when their young passenger inquired politely if he preferred to boil or bake the rats before serving them to the crew.) It could mean that she was interrupting the midshipmen’s lessons with their tutor because she had questions about <em>everything</em>—and the boys, most of them only twelve or thirteen, were all too happy to be distracted from their tiresome lessons. (Many of them were the sons of influential families back in England, but here they were just children—albeit in uniform—off on their very first adventure away from their doting mothers.) But her favorite spot was anywhere and everywhere in the rigging, never mind that a fall from the mizzenmast would have killed her instantly, and James’ career with it. And worse, her new friends encouraged this behavior, at least when they thought James couldn’t hear them.</p><p>            It was vexing, to say the least.</p><p>            James was standing on the deck with his back to the sun, marking their progress on his nautical chart next to an unsmiling Joshamee Gibbs. “We are making satisfactory progress,” James noted, tracing the Atlantic route with a callused finger. “We’ll need to check our position again at noon to make sure we are staying on course. We should be in Port Royal in five weeks’ time, I should think.”</p><p>            “Right, sir. And not a moment too soon, if I might add.”</p><p>            “Indeed,” James agreed, allowing himself a small smile.</p><p>            That lasted all of a moment before the unmistakable sound of cannon fire broke the still of the otherwise quiet afternoon.</p><p>            James leapt into action, sweeping the horizon with his eyes, although he could have sworn they were the only ship for miles but a moment ago. And so it was still was—the <em>Dauntless</em> was alone, the only queen of these waters.</p><p>            Which meant…</p><p>            “Are we having firing practice this afternoon?” Gibbs inquired, and from the thunderous expression on James’ face, he must have gotten his answer.</p><p>            “I’ll get to the bottom of this,” James gritted out between clenched teeth.</p><p>            He slipped below, pushing past the other crew members with an uncharacteristic lack of courtesy.</p><p>            James knew the culprit even before he laid eyes on her—but he <em>was</em> disappointed to see that she was not alone in her mischief.</p><p>            Elizabeth and three young midshipmen stood in shock around a discharged cannon—but thankfully none of them appeared to be harmed. They were, however, completely covered in soot, which was nothing short of tragic for Elizabeth’s white pinafore and the boys’ once-pristine white trousers.</p><p>            They had the decency to look ashamed—the midshipmen, that is. Elizabeth, though clearly startled, appeared to be having the time of her life.</p><p>            Thankfully, the weapon in question was one of the smaller guns and couldn’t dislodge a large cannonball, but that was scarcely a consolation.</p><p>            “We…we didn’t think it would actually fire, sir,” the youngest midshipman piped up. He could not have been more than eleven years old. His face was as red as his hair.</p><p>            James stared at him incredulously. “You didn’t think it would fire,” he said slowly. “But I know for a fact that the three of you have been training with the gunner and his team for the past two months. I think you are quite aware that it <em>does</em> fire, Mr. McMahon, as that is, indeed, its very purpose.”</p><p>            “The lady insisted on seeing one in action, ‘twas her idea!” The tallest midshipman said shamelessly, pointing at Elizabeth for clarification, as if she were not the only lady for several hundred miles. Unfortunately, he still had the large utensil used to strike the cannon in his other hand and did not think to hide it behind his back until after James had turned his burning stare upon him.</p><p>            The boy shrank away until his back was pressed against the square porthole, looking as if he might like to throw himself out of it and take his chances in the churning waters below.</p><p>            “No, Mr. Hardy, blaming Miss Swann will not do,” James informed him shortly, tapping his fingers against his tightly crossed arms to try to dispel his temper. “You are an officer in training and she is a civilian. I don’t believe she <em>forced </em>you into this harebrained scheme, did she? You are quite capable of saying no.” He raised an eyebrow and the boy blushed furiously, indignant at the notion that a <em>girl </em>could make him do anything. James did not believe his own words for a minute—he was quite certain he knew who the ringleader was, but he had to make a point with these boys, because they would be leaders one day.</p><p>            “Actually, it <em>was</em> my idea, Lieutenant,” Elizabeth admitted, running her little mitt across the muzzle of the gun affectionately, as if it were a kitten. She pulled her hand back quickly with a small hiss--no doubt the metal was still quite hot.She gave him a toothy smile and James bit down on his tongue, hard, to keep from returning the smile. Of all the ridiculous situations to find himself in—this is not what he had signed up for when he enlisted in the Navy. He was furious but struggling not to laugh at the same time. It was too easy to picture her leading these boys into some mischief. “I did so want to see one of these at work. I’ve only read about them in books, you see. It doesn’t do them justice! And Father won’t let me read the ones with the diagrams, he says it will give me ideas. She roars, like a lioness.” She gazed at the deadly weapon admiringly.</p><p>            James’ stoic façade was crumbling rapidly. He resolved then and there to never have children of his own, as he was struggling for the smallest bit of control in this situation.</p><p>            The quietest midshipman, a young Cornish boy, spoke up at last. “We are very sorry to have disappointed you, sir.” He was a tall and serious lad and he reminded James a bit of himself at that age. He was a good boy—mostly—hard working, attentive, and bright. The presence of the other children did not surprise James in the least, but seeing young Michael Evans with these hoodlums was an unpleasant discovery.</p><p>            With a bit of a sigh, James confided, “I expected better from you, Mr. Evans. We do not have ample ammunition and this situation could easily have turned deadly for the four of you.”</p><p>            Michael lowered his eyes, ashamed, and did not refute him.</p><p>            James reminded himself that he had to be stern with them or they would not learn. Certainly he would not have gotten away with such a light admonishment as a midshipman.</p><p>            “Well, gentlemen, I hope you have had your fun for today, because you’re going to be spending the rest of the afternoon scrubbing this deck from stern to stem, and then you’ll be rotating through the watches until you’re cross-eyed. There’ll be no supper tonight. And I will let the three of you explain to Mr. Rowe that you have been fooling with his cannons. I do not think he will be very pleased,” he remarked gravely. The lead gunner was an enormous bear of a man, hard of hearing and incredibly loud. He was fond of the midshipmen but fonder still of his guns and was more than capable of scaring some sense into them.</p><p>            The boys saluted and dispersed as quickly as possible to find rags, mops, and water.</p><p>            Elizabeth had been stealthily retreating in the middle of all of this and had almost made it to the door, but she froze in place when James’ razor-sharp gaze caught her.</p><p>            “Miss Swann,” he said tersely.</p><p>            “Yes, Lieutenant?” There was that damned cheeky grin again. She did not even have the grace to look contrite.</p><p>            Scolding her would not work. She was not one of his midshipmen to discipline, either. He decided to try a different tactic. “I have allowed you to explore the <em>Dauntless</em> against my better judgement. It is not a proper pastime for a young lady. But I allowed it because I know how dull it is to be confined to a cabin for months on end. And this is how you repay my trust?”</p><p>            Ah, that hit home. He could tell instantly. Her brown eyes widened like saucers and she looked so hurt, he almost regretted it. Her mouth trembled and he became alarmed, quite certain she was about to cry. “I did not think of it like that,” she confessed, fiddling with the ash on her pinafore. When she looked up again, there were tears in her eyes. “I am very sorry to have treated you so poorly, Lieutenant.”</p><p>            Reducing a little girl to tears was not what he had hoped for from today. In the elegant, earthy words of Joshamee Gibbs, the day was rapidly going to shit.</p><p>            “Very well,” he said gruffly. “I accept your apology, Miss Swann. But I think it is best you return to your father’s cabin for today. I do not want you giving the crew any further ideas.”</p><p>            She opened her mouth to protest but upon seeing the look in his eyes, she seemed to think better of it. Instead, she dipped an awkward curtsy. What remained of her hair pulled back from her face tumbled loose, surrounding her soot-covered features. “Yes, Lieutenant.”</p><p>            Compliance? Would wonders never cease?</p><p>She was not a bad child; merely spirited. He didn't have sisters or any girl children his age growing up, but if he had, he would have liked them to be like her. </p><p>            He hummed approvingly, pleased that she was willing to see sense and that he would not have to spend more time arguing with a twelve-year-old. “Off you go, then.”</p><p>            She turned to leave but paused, one dirty little hand resting against the doorframe. “Lieutenant?”</p><p>            He looked up from his inspection of the ill-treated cannon. “Yes, Miss Swann?”</p><p>            “I thought you said that you didn’t think I forced them into this scheme,” she replied slowly, studying him curiously.</p><p>            James allowed himself a brief smile. “A bit of a white lie. I am under no illusions that you and you alone led three of my future officers into mischief.” He looked at her very pointedly.</p><p>            To his frustration, the chit grinned. “Good.” She did not look teary-eyed and he realized after she had closed the door behind her that she had been playing the fool with him. Surely it would take more than a minor admonishment to reduce <em>that </em>one to tears. He groaned and rested his head against the cannon. A mistake. It was still quite hot. He jerked away and cursed, rubbing the afflicted skin of his forehead. He decided tonight that he would not be watering down his grog a jot—not if the rest of the voyage was going to be like this.</p><p>           </p><p> </p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>I'm not tagging this as Norribeth because that would be weird--she is twelve and he is twenty--but if you like, you can imagine this as something that the two of them remember fondly when they are older. Well, Elizabeth probably remembers it fondly. James is probably just gritting his teeth. </p><p>I am certainly looking on this escapade fondly.</p><p>P.S. Y'all should listen to the HMS Pinafore. It is a comic opera about life in the Royal Navy and it is a DELIGHT. It premiered back in 1878--beyond the timeframe of PotC, but some themes--shenanigans in the Navy, friendship on the high seas--are ETERNAL. Am I being a bit silly? Yes, but listen, I love it so much. Listen to my general pirates/navy playlist here: https://open.spotify.com/playlist/7GYKJ7RS1BO0j6WLPSzztB?si=ZDQaA5-3TQ-OaVqer3kudg</p><p>Lastly, for HolmesFan, I hope you enjoy this! We've discussed how enjoyable the interactions between young Elizabeth and James are. I couldn't resist--although I may have to add an extra chapter where James and Weatherby spend some quality father-son time together. I'd like to expound on their friendship some more.</p></blockquote></div></div>
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